A lot more grown up, the 2026 Mercedes-Benz GLA revealed
This is no longer a jacked-up hatchback. The new GLA finally looks like an SUV
Mercedes has revealed the third-generation GLA, and the car we saw in the metal at the reveal is a genuinely different proposition from the model it replaces. The wheelbase grows by 61 millimetres, the body sits 20 millimetres lower, and the rear track widens by 31 millimetres, the kind of changes that turn a tall hatchback silhouette into something that actually reads as an SUV from across a room. Three fully electric versions arrive first in November, with an electrified combustion range following in early 2027, and German pricing starts at 40,840 euro excluding VAT.
Our first impressions in the metal
In person, the size increase is the first thing that registers, and it changes the character of the car more than any single styling detail. The front end backs that up: Mercedes has put its new illuminated grille on a compact model for the first time, and it gives the GLA a presence the outgoing car never had. The rear is where our enthusiasm cooled a little, the connected light band and the broader stance read as more generic than the front end promises, and it is the one area that feels like it is still catching up to the rest of the design. The cabin is a different story. It shares its language directly with the CLA, the same floating Superscreen treatment and minimalist dashboard, and it is a genuinely nice place to sit, more so than the exterior's rear three-quarter view would suggest.
Three electric versions, with more to come
At launch, buyers choose between the 165 kW GLA 200 electric (224 hp) with a 58 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery, the 200 kW GLA 250+ electric (272 hp), and the 260 kW GLA 350 4MATIC electric (354 hp), which Mercedes positions as the sporty flagship and quotes at 5.4 seconds to 100 km/h. The 250+ and 350 4MATIC share an 85 kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt battery, and a fourth variant with a smaller 71 kWh battery is due in early 2027. An electrified combustion GLA, built around a new 1.5-litre turbo four with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system and roughly 30 hp of electric boost, follows at the start of 2027.
Range and charging, with the usual preliminary caveat
Mercedes quotes up to 657 km of WLTP range for the electric GLA, and up to 270 km recovered in ten minutes on an 800-volt DC charger rated at up to 320 kW. Both figures are explicitly preliminary, with no type-approval numbers signed off yet, so treat them as the manufacturer's own best estimate rather than a confirmed spec. AC charging tops out at 22 kW as an option, with 11 kW standard.
The interior tech Mercedes is leaning on
Beyond the CLA-style dashboard, the headline items are the optional Superscreen spanning three displays, a Burmester 3D surround system with 16 speakers and Dolby Atmos, and a standard panoramic roof, with a segment-dimmable SKY CONTROL roof listed as a later option rather than something you can order now. The MBUX Virtual Assistant leans on a mix of outside AI models for conversation, which is a more complicated setup than most rivals admit to running.
What it means for Belgian and Dutch buyers
The prices Mercedes has published so far are German list prices only, with orders opening on 30 July. Belgian and Dutch pricing has not been confirmed, and given how differently this segment gets taxed and optioned across the three markets, the German figures are a rough guide at best until local order books open.
AutoNext Take
Mercedes has clearly decided the GLA needed to stop apologising for being the entry point into the range, and the size, the grille and the interior all point the same direction that already reshaped the electric C-Class: this is a compact SUV that wants to look like it belongs next to the GLC, not beneath it. Whether that ambition survives contact with three markets' worth of pricing and options is the more interesting question, and one Mercedes has not answered yet.
